New look, new editor

You may have noticed a few changes in this issue of the Downtown Express.

The bolder headlines are probably the most visible evidence of a change you’ll see on the masthead.

After more than a decade at the helm of Downtown Express, Josh Rogers is moving to a new role as editor-at-large where he will continue writing in-depth articles on local issues not only for this paper, but also our sister papers The Villager, The East Villager, and Chelsea Now, as well as our newest title: Manhattan Express, which covers the island from Midtown up through the Upper East Side and Upper West Side.

I’m now stepping into Josh’s formidable shoes at this paper, and I hope to keep it up to the standards he set, providing the engaging local coverage you have come to expect.

But I also want the Downtown Express to change along with the neighborhoods we cover — a resurgent area that has become the most dynamic part of the greatest city in the world.

New residents are flocking to places such as Tribeca, the Financial District, and the Civic Center, so I want them picking up this paper to get the latest on their new neighborhoods. I want the thousands of people who work in Lower Manhattan during the day to look to the Downtown Express to find out about new places to shop and do lunch. And I want to help residents of long standing to keep up to date on how their neighborhoods are changing.

So look for more coverage of new restaurants and stores, as well as the real estate deals that are reshaping Downtown Manhattan now and in the future.

Our website, DowntownExpress.com, will also see more frequent updates — including timely stories that don’t make it into our biweekly print edition — and will get its own redesign soon.

As always, the lifeblood of any community newspaper is the engagement of the community it serves. We are here to keep you and your neighbors informed, and to cover the stories you care about. So I encourage you to contact us with tips, suggestions and ideas —even complaints — at news@downtownexpress.com.